France on Wednesday summoned Israel's ambassador after Israeli troops fired warning shots as European diplomats were blocked at a Gaza border crossing. Israeli troops halted a diplomatic convoy carrying France's consul general at the Erez crossing on Tuesday and held it for six hours as it tried to leave the Gaza Strip and return to Jerusalem, a foreign ministry spokesman said.
"The convoy, which included other European diplomats, was subject to two warning shots from Israeli soldiers," spokesman Eric Chevallier told reporters. Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner summoned Israeli Ambassador Daniel Shek "to protest this unacceptable incident and demand an explanation," he said.
In Jerusalem, Israeli foreign ministry spokesman Yossi Levy said all border crossings were closed for several hours on Tuesday after an Israeli army patrol was targeted in a bomb attack that left one soldier dead. "This measure was not specifically aimed against the French consul general," said Levy.
Israel's war in Gaza, launched on December 27 in response to Hamas rocket and mortar fire, killed more than 1,300 people, more than half of them civilians, and wounded more than 5,400, according to Gaza medics. Both sides have declared cease-fires but tensions remain, and international diplomats are attempting to broker an end to Hamas attacks in Israel and to Israel's blockade of the impoverished territory.
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